what's with all the damn taxes in the U.K?

[R_P_A_S]

I been away for quite sometime. I been on vacation, and well kinda sick! and working a lot lately. recently made it back from a trip to the U.K. I never been over seas and I gotta admit! I was a great experience!

London is an expensive city. RIDICULOUS! I was shocked at how expensive public transportation is (didn't Hugo Chavez promised cheap fuel for the buses to lower prices???) anyways and the fact that I had to pay £20.00 to use the damn airport was just unbelievable!

On my way to Heathrow the cab drive and I were having a conversation about it all. He was telling me about the numerous taxes they have to pay and how its always been that way.

"we pay all this money year in and year out, and we don't do nothing about it. we just take it like idiots. one day we all are going to be fed up and throw a big tantrum!" he said

I then told him...

"thats the big problem with the system. it consumes people so much that they forget that its the system that's depends on us. not the other way around. But if we stop for a few days to protest and to make changes.. the system runs us over. so its very difficult people need to all come together and make this change. not just a couple hundred!"

My friend, who I stayed with over there told me that they even have an annual tax for having a Television...

where does all this money go to? I still saw homeless people.

[R_P_A_S]

is health care free? and University? whats the catch?

[Comrade J]

Yeah the annual TV licence goes to the BBC, as their channels don't have commercial adverts in between programs, so that's how they earn some of their money.

London is much more expensive than the rest of Britain, but it's still a relatively expensive country. The money goes into all the usual places (education, military, police etc.) as well as the NHS which means everyone can have free healthcare.

[R_P_A_S]

and fucking gasoline.. 93 p a liter?? goodness!! thats like $7.50 for a gallon!!!

[Nathan_Morrison]

is health care free?
THe NHS is free but the majority of hospitals/clinics are closing down or choosing to go private, medicine isn't free either.

University?

Nope, used to be if you got a scholarship from the governement but not anymore.

I'm basing this off of how things are in scotland, you think its bad just now if the SNP/Lib Dems come into power over here in scotland then instead of a house hold tax it would be a tax to everyone who works. Thus meaning more taxes! Hence the reason at the election im gonna hand pampflets tellign the dangers of indepndance but i have went off topic with that little addition.

[which doctor]

Originally posted by [email protected] 15, 2007 03:31 pm
is health care free? and University? whats the catch?
University isn't free, but it still remains far cheaper than it is in the US.

[BreadBros]

By the sounds of it, the UK system still sounds preferable to the American one, taxes or not, as far as capitalist economies go.

[bloody_capitalist_sham]

London is an expensive city. RIDICULOUS!

The drinks in some parts of London can be more than £5 a pint! :o

I swear its just used to keep working class people out.

Compared to the rest of the UK its much more expensive, they have to pay london workers a bonus called the "London allowance" or something.

I think much of the taxes pay for social housing for the poorest, like single mothers, Free health care, pensions and stuff like that.

Really, the BBC has some really good programmes and i think the licence fee is well worth it, especially when you get five plus channels which got no Ads. :)

[bloody_capitalist_sham]

RPAS

This is what happened when they introduced the Poll tax Poll Tax Riot Video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCfVCAsasJo)

It got repealed after :)

[Demogorgon]

London is very expensive. Up here it is a bit cheaper. By and large I don't think our taxes are much different from yours. You have a lot of taxes we don't have.

At any rate the problem is that the taxes like most places are hurting workers while the capitalists dodge them. Especially given dear old Maggie went out of her way to make it even easier for them to so than before.

[RebelDog]

Originally posted by [email protected] 16, 2007 02:29 am
RPAS

This is what happened when they introduced the Poll tax Poll Tax Riot Video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCfVCAsasJo)

It got repealed after :)
Great days. I almost wish they would reintroduce the poll tax so we could smash the place up again.

[R_P_A_S]

whats the poll tax? for what polls? i don't get it?

[R_P_A_S]

i got too see Les Miserables.. that was BOMB!

[bloody_capitalist_sham]

whats the poll tax? for what polls? i don't get it?

It was like a Tax the conservatives put together, where you would pay Tax according to the number of people living in the house.

Clearly people were upset because this hurt the working class people much more than the rich.

Loads of people refused to pay it too.

[UndergroundConnexion]

so RPAS feel like moving to Europe now ?
how did u like holland btw?

[R_P_A_S]

unfortunately i didn;t make it outside of London... long story. But Im going back for sure! so that I can check out other countries.

and I would love to live in Europe.. definably a refreshing change from America.

[Comrade Wolfie's Very Nearly Banned Adventures]

The wonderfully reactionary Dail Mail constantly complains about 'stealth taxes' London is overly expensive, and im not shure where all our taxes go; public transport is shitty outside London, the NHS is suffering from defacits.

maybe we are building a secret city out of Gold somewhere... ;)

[Demogorgon]

Originally posted by Modern Life is [email protected] 19, 2007 08:36 am
The wonderfully reactionary Dail Mail constantly complains about 'stealth taxes' London is overly expensive, and im not shure where all our taxes go; public transport is shitty outside London, the NHS is suffering from defacits.

maybe we are building a secret city out of Gold somewhere... ;)
If you are wodering where the money goes look at all the nuclear weapons in our otherwise rather nice River Clyde.

Its a good trick the Americans have. Make the British pay for and store their weapons. Not that I would approve of them, even if they were fully ours of course

[Comrade Wolfie's Very Nearly Banned Adventures]

well, their could always be an 'accident' whilst the yanks are serviceing our nukes

[BOZG]

You should come to Dublin. British prices would seem decent enough in comparison.